In recent weeks I have bought a couple of really interesting albums. The first, John Coltrane’s “Both Directions at Once” is a ‘lost’ album from Coltrane recorded in 1963 during a time when he was in and out of the studio a lot. It has been hyped as a recording session that has coherence and … Read more
Some quick notes about narrative approaches and complexity. This is a topic that I have studied over the years, and am revisiting now – looking for ideas. I have read fascinating material or attended workshops by the following: Dave Snowden – his work on narratives and narrative capture, plus his theories of complexity. Eve Mitleton-Kelly … Read more
Sometimes we really need absolute certainty. We need to know for sure what we will do – what the beginning, middle and end point look like. Total clarity! This might be for the certainty required to attract funding and the confidence of those who are prepared to invest in our idea. In those situations developing … Read more
I didn’t get what was meant to be happening with John Cage’s 4:33 when I first heard about it. This was a piece of “music” that lasted for 4 minutes and 33 seconds. Except it wasn’t a piece of music because the musician would sit at the piano (or any other instrument) and not play … Read more
This is the first of a series of posts on the experimental. This will be a set of blog posts, which feature ideas and experiments. Different approaches. What is “Experimental”? There are two distinct definitions for the word. When aimed at science, (of a new invention or product), based on untested ideas or techniques and … Read more
There were only two series of “Fawlty Towers”. Two series of “The Office”. And so on. For many comedy writers it’s about knowing how to quit at the top of the game and go onto something else. Contrast this with the USA approach to comedy series for TV which often run for 10 series or … Read more
Question 1: What’s the real challenge for me here? Thanks to Michael Bungay Stanier for that question from his latest book, “The Coaching Habit”, which is a brilliant read. It’s a quiet time and I have a few minutes to think about this big awesome question. I’m spending too much time stuck in busy at … Read more
Tomorrow I am going to the Paintworks in Bristol for the Social Age Safari which is being run by Sea Salt Learning. It’s a 3 day event with people coming from around the globe. There will be loads of opportunities to build networks and to learn more about learning in the social age. Julian Stodd … Read more
I said to him, “It’s all about the techniques that were common in Renaissance time, when people like Leonardo da Vinci weren’t artists or scientists. They showed a great appetite for all learning and understood the way these things all connected together, or could connect as a process of discovery.” It was one of those great … Read more
I read a couple of really interesting blog posts today. The first one was by Julian Stodd who worked with us a couple of months ago. In it he was talking about the way that we ‘meet’ with people being much more flexible these days. Having so many options to connect in virtual ways with … Read more